The Greatest Treasure
by Avinaya La Salle
Summary: During a night walk, Kaoru steps in to save 2 young girls being attacked by bandits and ends up being kidnapped! It's up to Kenshin and the others to save her, but the bandits are after a mysterious treasure and will stop at nothing to find it.
1. A Fleeting Moment

**Author's Note:** This is a little something I wrote a long time ago. For some reason, I never posted it. I found it on my computer a while ago and have been slowly but surely revamping it. Here is the result. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Rurouni Kenshin. I'm just borrowing the setting and characters for my own evil intentions. *Cue evil laugh*

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><p>"That was a wonderful dinner, Miss Kaoru." Kenshin smiled at the raven haired girl sitting across from him.<p>

The girl smiled proudly in return, but her smile was short lived. The young boy beside her cried out in protest. "What are you talking about, Kenshin! Have you lost your taste buds or something?" He stared in disbelief at Kenshin's empty bowl.

Kaoru narrowed her eyes at the boy and bopped him over the head with a deceptively strong arm. "Don't be stupid, Yahiko! Kenshin just knows how to appreciate good cooking!"

"I don't think so, missy." The man sitting across from Yahiko looked down at the food in his bowl with disgust. He poked at it with one chopstick cautiously as if it would suddenly jump out and attack him. "I'm not even sure this is edible."

"Well, Sano, why don't you go earn your own money," Kaoru screamed, glaring at the former hit-man for hire, "and buy your own food, you freeloader!"

Kenshin just sat back and listened to the usual dinner conversation. He couldn't help being amused. It was always the same, and Kenshin wouldn't have it any other way. Not wishing to interrupt, the former hitokiri battosai quietly gathered up the bowls and chopsticks. He took them to the kitchen, chuckling under his breath as Kaoru gave Yahiko another well-deserved wallop over the head.

With dinner over and the table cleared, Kaoru went outside and sat on the front steps of the dojo to watch the sun set. The sky was a painter's pallet, washed with yellows, oranges, and reds. Streaks of purple were brushed lightly over the melody of warm colors. As she watched, the color scheme slowly swirled and shifted, illuminating the heavens in a glorious display.

A rustle from behind caught her attention. "Thank you for helping clear the table and washing the dishes, Kenshin," she said without turning away from the wonderful view.

"Well, if I didn't do anything in return for your wonderful meals, I might just be considered a freeloader, that I might," the wanderer said in a singsong tone. He sat down beside Kaoru and turned toward her with his usual closed-eyed smile.

Kaoru tore her eyes from the sunset and turned to him. She loved it when he smiled. His smile was so genuine, so unlike the forced smiles of others who'd been through incredible hardships. A lock of flame red hair fell into his face, across the X-shaped scar on his cheek. Without thinking, Kaoru reached up and pushed his hair back behind his ear, letting her hand linger there for a moment. When she finally realized what she was doing, she pulled her hand away from him as if his skin burned her. She let her hand drop into her lap and stared down at it, her cheeks flaring a bright crimson.

Kenshin opened his eyes wide, and the smile vanished from his face. He couldn't tear his eyes away from the lovely young woman beside him, the woman who'd accepted him despite his gruesome past. Without warning, a thousand butterflies seemed to have found their way into his stomach. As they fluttered about in an intricate dance, Kenshin's mind went blank. The only thought remaining was that he wanted to feel her touch again.

Tentatively, he touched her cheek and turned her face toward him. Startled, Kaoru met Kenshin's amethyst eyes. He simply met her gaze and held it, letting his thumb trace gentle circles along her cheekbone. Her cheeks warmed beneath his touch. Lifting her hand from her lap, she reached her hand out toward him.

"Kenshin!"

A voice from within the dojo halted her action, and the two jumped apart like two startled birds. Yahiko rounded the corner suddenly, completely oblivious to the scene he'd just interrupted.

"There you are, Kenshin!" the boy exclaimed, grinning in excitement. "I've been looking for you. Have you seen my lamp? I can't seem to find it anywhere."

"Oh, I forgot to put it back, that I did!" Kenshin recalled. "I'm sorry. I was refilling it earlier today. It should still be in the storage room."

"OK! Thanks, Kenshin!" and the boy disappeared back into the dojo.

Kenshin shook his head slowly at the boy's enthusiasm. Sheepishly, he glanced over at Kaoru. The moment they'd just shared was long gone. Silence wrapped around the porch like a thick blanket. The sun had disappeared below the horizon, leaving behind a lazy trail of color. Stars began to spot the night sky, and a warm breeze swept across the two onlookers.

"I-I think I'll go for a walk," Kaoru broke the silence. She stood, attempting to hide just how flustered she was. "I'll... be back in a bit."

Kenshin could only nod his head and watch as she walked down the path towards the sleepy village that lay outside the walls of the Kamiya dojo. He wanted to call out to her, to apologize for making her feel uncomfortable. The words stuck in his throat, unable to make their way to his lips. He simply kept watching, dumbly, even after she vanished from his sight.

With a heavy sigh, he leaned his head back against the railing and closed his eyes. His thoughts strayed back to his days as a wanderer. If he didn't apologize properly, would he have to return to that life? Letting out another sigh, he began to prepare an apology.

He was so lost in thought that he didn't even notice when sleep overtook him.

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><p><strong>Ending Notes:<strong> Thank you for reading! Please let me know if you liked it. Second chapter should be up in a couple of days. That's when the real story begins. *grin*


	2. A Moonlit Confrontation

**Author's Note: **Thank you for the reviews! They encouraged me while I was revamping this piece. As I wrote in the first chapter's note, I wrote this a long time ago (think 6 years at least) and haven't seen Rurouni Kenshin since. I am now in the process of remedying that. In any case, please enjoy the next chapter. This is where the real story begins. *grins*

**Disclaimer:** I still don't own Rurouni Kenshin. I'm just playing with them for my own evil purposes.

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><p>Moonlight illuminated the dirt path. Kaoru pulled her blue-gray kimono tighter around her as she walked. Summer was nearly over, and the night air had begun to take on the crisp chill of fall.<p>

"I shouldn't have run away so quickly," she murmured with a sigh. "I should at least have put on a heavier kimono." She glanced up into the sky. The moon had already risen and shone brightly overhead. _Almost a full moon_, the young woman thought absently. _I suppose I should probably start heading back. It's getting late, and I wouldn't want to worry anyone._ The thought that she wouldn't have to return to an empty home brought a smile to her lips. It was good to have a family again. She turned on her heel and began the trek back to the dojo.

An image of Kenshin flashed through her mind, stopping her mid-stride. Her cheeks flushed bright pink, and her hand flew unconsciously to the cheek he'd held. _W-what was that about...?_ With a sigh, she let her hand drop back at her side then hook her head frantically to clear the memory. She couldn't think of that right now. It was too lovely a night. She'd think about it later when her own emotions weren't swirling so uncontrollably. That settled, she made to continue her walk. She only made it another few steps before she was stopped dead in her tracks.

A scream resonated through the night air.

Kaoru turned back in the direction of the sound, instantly tense and alert. _From the alley!_ She sprinted back toward the alley she had just passed. Not wanting to be seen before she knew the situation, the kendo sensei flattened her body up against the building and peered around the corner.

Six men crowded the alley. Before them, two young girls trembled in fear. One of the girls appeared to be close to Kaoru's age. The other looked perhaps a year younger than Yahiko. The man closest to the girls could only be the gang's leader. He held a knife pointed at the younger girl's throat. The other men wielded wooden swords, grinning maliciously in anticipation of using the weapons.

"Now will you give us what we want?" The man let out a rough laugh. "Come, now, deary, hand over yer valuables. Is money really worth yer sister's life?"

The older girl's eyes were filled with terror as she watched her precious sister cowering away from the blade. She pulled a small money pouch from her sleeve and held it out to the leader. Her head drooped, and tears fell to mingle with the dust on the ground. The leader snatched the pouch from the girl's hands without a trace of sympathy. A triumphant grin spread across his scruffy face, and he tucked the pouch safely into the front of his kimono.

"See? That wasn't so bad, now was it?" The man lifted the older girl's face with the tip of his blade. His eyes widened, and a quiet gasp of surprise escaped his lips. Pointing to the girl's necklace, he demanded, "Where did you get that? Tell me!"

The girl glanced down wide eyed at the pendant and touched it nervously. "M-my mother gave it to me, and her mother before her," she squeaked in response.

"Hand it over!" the man shouted, his earlier amusement gone.

"B-b-but..."

The man jabbed his knife toward the younger girl's throat again with malicious urgency. Glaring fiercely at the older sister, he barked, "Now!"

The older girl froze, terror filling her eyes. The man pressed his blade harder against the younger girl's fragile skin, and a thin line of blood trickled slowly down her neck. The younger girl's strangled cry woke her sister to action. Fumbling with the knot, the older girl untied the leather thong that held her pendant and offered it to the man. "P-please," she sobbed. "D-don't hurt Sayuri!"

The man plucked the necklace from the girl's hands greedily. He held the pendant up the the moonlight and let his knife drop away from the younger girl's throat.

The moment the knife was no longer at her throat, the younger girl flung herself at her sister, sobbing. "Sister!"

The older girl held her tight. "Sayuri! Are you alright?"

Sayuri nodded, pulling enough out of her sister's grasp to look around. "B-but Mother's necklace..."

The gang leader stared, enchanted by the pendant, the girls seemingly forgotten. His lips curled up into an ugly grin. "We've found it," he breathed. Behind him, his men also stared, murmuring in muted awe amongst themselves. Their leader spun to face them, holding the necklace up in the air for them to see. "We've found it! The treasure is-"

"Hey you!" Kaoru screamed. She jumped out from her vantage point. Her hair was swept up, and the sleeves of her kimono tied back. She gripped the hilt of her wooden sword in both hands and brandished it boldly at the thieves. It was times like these that she was glad she always kept the thing tucked somewhere in her kimono. "Didn't you hear the girl? She got that necklace from her mother, so GIVE IT BACK TO HER!"

She lifted her sword above her and cracked it over the head of one of the men. He collapsed in a pile at her feet. With another swing, another man knelt before her holding his stomach. As she prepared for her next attack, the remaining men pulled short knives out of their wooden swords. They'd been using their wooden swords as sheathes! Kaoru groaned inwardly, wondering at just how cliche it all was.

"And who might you be, missy?" the leader smirked at her, tilting his own knife to glint in the moonlight. "Would you like to play with us?" With a grin, he lunged at her.

Kaoru countered and deflected his attack. She swung her sword at the man closest to the right wall of the alley, using her sword to shove him into the opposite wall. "Quick! Get out of here!" she yelled at the two girls. Dazed, they stared at her for a moment that felt an eternity to Kaoru. Then, as though the realization that they were being rescued had just dawned on them, they scurried out of the alley through the narrow path the young swordswoman had made for them. Once they were gone, Kaoru turned her full attention back to the bandits.

It was too late. The two men Kaoru had knocked down were already on their feet again. She was surrounded. Behind her, one of the men brought the hilt of his knife down on top of her head, and Kaoru's world went black.

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><p><strong>Ending Notes:<strong> Thanks for reading! Please let me know if you liked it. Next chapter in the works. *winks*


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